In the early afternoon of January 6th, Congresswoman Pramila Jaya Paul was in the gallery of the House of Representatives.

She was watching the effort by Republicans to block certification of Joe Biden's electoral college victory.

I Paul Gosar from Arizona.

What's her business, the gentleman from Arizona?

I rise up both for myself and 60 of my colleagues to object to the counting of the electoral ballots from Arizona.

She was there in the gallery because COVID restrictions limit the number of representatives that can be on the floor at any one time,

and so it was from up there that she saw all hell break loose.

Jaya Paul represents Seattle, Washington, and is the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

She's also our guest in the show today.

She was supposed to be our guest for last week's episode, which was going to be about the path from here to eventual passage of Medicare for All.

Instead, we posted a rather unplanned episode called Inside the Insurrection, which you should go back and listen to if you haven't.

Jaya Paul, like reporter Matt Fuller in our last episode, made it from the gallery to a secure area to wait out the assault.

And while the room proved in the end to be secure from violence, it wasn't safe from maskless Republicans or from COVID.

Three Democratic members of Congress have now tested positive for COVID-19 after being confined in the same room for hours,

alongside Republican members of Congress who refused their requests even in that room to put on masks.

Congressman Brad Schneider of Illinois, Congresswoman Pramila Jaya Paul of Washington, who's the chair of the Progressive Caucus, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman, who's 75 years old.

Jaya Paul put out a statement saying this, many Republicans still refused to take the bare minimum COVID-19 precaution and simply wear a damn mask in a crowded room during a pandemic, creating a super spreader event on top of a domestic terrorist attack.

She also called it, quote, selfish idiocy.

But she agreed to join us today anyway to discuss the events of last Wednesday, how she is handling her diagnosis and hopeful recovery, and what all of this means for the Progressive Agenda over the next few weeks and months.

Hey there.

Hey, Congresswoman Jaya Paul, how are you?

I am okay. How are you?

...